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AT 

LQ3  ANGELES 


Vol.  III.    No.  5. 


^OMPLIMEHTS   OP 


REPRINTED  FROM 
THE 


September,  1896. 


Psychological  Review 


EDITED  BY 


J.  McKEEN  GATTELL 
Columbia  University 


J.  MARK  BALDWIN 
Princeton  University 


WITH  THE  CO-OPERATION  OF 

ALFRED  BINET,  £cole  des  Hautes-Studes,  Paris;   JOHN   DEWEY,  University  of 

Chicago;    H.  H.  DONALDSON,    University  of  Chicago;  G.  S,  FULLERTON, 

University  of  Pennsylvania;    WILLIAM  JAMES,  Harvard  University; 

JOSEPH  JASTROW,  University  of  Wisconsin;    G.  T.  LADD,  Yale 

University;  HUGO  MtJNSTERBERG,  Harvard  University; 

M.  ALLEN  STARR,  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons, 

New   York;  CARL  STUMPF,  University,  Berlin; 

JAMES  SULLY,  University  College,  London. 


CONTENTS. 

Studies  from  the  Psychological  Laboratory  of  the  University  of  lo'wa : 

On  the  Effects  of  Loss  of  Sleep :  G.  T.  W.  Patrick,  and  J.  Allen  Gilbert,  469. 

Studies  from  the  Psychological  Laboratory  of  Harvard  University : 

I.  The  Relations  of  Intensity  to  Duration  of  Stimulation  i7t  our  Se^isations  of 
Light:  James  E.  Lough,  484.  //.  Normal  Motor  Automatism :  Leon  M.  Solo- 
mons and  Gertrude  Stein,  492. 

On  the  Conditions  of  Fatigue  in  Reading:  Harold  Griffing  and  Shep- 
herd Ivory  Franz,  513. 

The   Accuracy  of  Observqfipn  and  of  RecoUectifij$.„iii,^ghool  Children : 
^^hepherd  Ivory  Franz  and  Henry  E.  Hoysjiojj,  53 1 . 

Discussion  and  Reports : 

Remarks  on  Professor  Lloyd  Morgan's  Method  in  Animal  Psychology :  Hiram 
M.  Stanley,  536.  Recognition :  Arthur  Allin,  Mary  Whiton  Calkins,  542. 
The  Commmiity  of  Ideas  of  Men  and  Women:  Amy  Tanner,  548. 

Psychological  Literature : 

Recent  French  Works  (7'.  Lachelier,A.  Fouillde,  T.  Halleux,  Ck.  MiralliS,  Fr, 
Paulhan^  :  A.  Binet,  551.  Eucken's  Der  Kamff  urn,  einen  geistigen  Lehensin- 
halt:  A.  C.  Armstrong,  Jr.,  556.  Ethnology  and  Anthropology :  Livingston 
Farrand,  558.  U Annie  psychologique :  H.  C.  Warren,  562.  Leuba's  The 
Psychology  of  Religious  Phenomena :  William  Romaine  Newbold,  569.  A 
Nevj  Factor  in  Evolution:  J.  McKeen  Cattell,  571.  Vision:  C.  L.  Frank- 
lin, E.  B.  Delabarrje,  573.  Localization  of  Touch:  Herbert  Nichols, 
577.  Memory:  H.  N.  Gardiner,  W.  G.  Smith,  578,  Synopsia:  Mary 
Whiton  Calkins,  581.  Psychical  Research:  J.  McKeen  Cattell,  582.  The 
Emotions:  H.N.  Gardiner,  583.  Epistemology :  C.  W.  Hodge,  H.  N.  Gar- 
diner, 584. 

New  Books^  587;     Notes,  588. 


published  bi-monthly  by 
THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY, 

66  FIFTH  AVENUE,  NEW  YORK ;  AND  LONPON. 


[Reprinted  from  The  Psychological  Review.    Vol.  III.     No.  5.  Sept.,  1896.] 


THE  ACCURACY  OF  OBSERVATION  AND  OF 
RECOLLECTION  IN  SCHOOL  CHILDREN.^ 

BY  SHEPHERD  IVORY  FRANZ  AND  HENRY  E.  HOUSTON. 

Whether  accuracy  of  observation  and  of  recollection  differs 
at  different  periods  of  our  lives  is  a  problem  suggested  by  Prof. 
Cattell's  paper  on  this  subject.^  In  order  to  study  this  subject, 
questions  similar  to  those  used  by  Prof.  Cattell  and  by  Mr. 
Bolton,  with  the  changes  necessary  for  time  and  place  and  for 
the  age  of  the  scholars,  were  asked  the  pupils  of  the  Horace 
Mann  School,  New  York  City,  and  of  the  Paterson,  N.  J., 
High  School. 

The  following  were  the  questions  used  :  (i)  What  was  the 
weather  a  week  ago  to-day?  (2)  Two  weeks  ago?  (3) 
Which  way  do  the  seeds  in  an  apple  point?  (4)  How  many 
years  ago  did  George  Washington  die?  (5)  How  many  feet 
is    it  from  the  schoolhouse  door  to  the  corner  of   the  street? 

(6)  How  many  seconds  does  it  take  you  to  walk  this  distance? 

(7)  How  many  times  have  you  entered  the  schoolhouse  gate 
(or  door)  since  vacation?  (8)  How  many  ounces  does  this 
book  (showing  a  text-book  used  by  the  class)  weigh?  (9) 
Draw  on  a  scale  of  one  inch  to  twenty  feet,  a  ground  plan  of 
the  lower  hall. 

The  accompanying  Table  ^  gives  the  percentages  of  correct 
answers  or  the  average  estimation  together  with  the  average 
residual  for  the  two  schools. 

'  From  the  Psychological  Laboratory  of  Columbia  University. 

^The  Accuracy  of  Recollection,  J.  McKeen  Cattell,  Scietice,  N.  S.,  II.,  761- 
766,  1895.  See  also  The  Accuracy  of  Recollection  and  Observation,  F.  E. 
Bolton,  Psychol.  Rev.,  III.,  286-295,  1896. 

3  Ov*ring  to  the  fewness  of  answers  in  some  grades  it  was  thought  best  to 
combine  the  several  grades  of  the  H.  M.  S.  as  follows  :  I.,  II.,  III.,  IV.,  V.,  VI., 
VII.,  VIII.,  High,  thus  making  about  forty  or  fifty  answers  in  each  group. 

The  figures  in  the  Table  marked  with  a  cross  (t)  denote  the  actual  magni- 
tude as  used  for  the  Columbia  and  Wisconsin  Students. 

As  the  books  used   as  standards  of  \veight  were  of  different   weights,   we 

53' 


24«?S 


532      SHEPHERD   I.  FRANZ  AND   HENRY  E.  HOUSTON. 

Table  I. 


Actual 
M'gn't'dk. 

H.M.S. 
l.ll.lil. 

H.M.S.  H.M.S.  H.M.S. 
rV.V.VI    VII.VIII     HIGH. 

1          i. 

H.M.S. 

TOTAL. 

■P.H.S. 
I  ii.ni. 

COLUM 
BIA. 

Wiscon- 
sin. 

Age. 

7-9- 

10-12 

13-14 

14-17 

7-17 
201 

14-17 

— 



No.  of  Answers. 

56 

63 

1 
48         34 

325 

56 

92 

Weather, 
I  wk.  previous. 

H.M.S. 

clear. 

P.  H.  S. 

cloudy. 

40% 

81% 

95%    i  85% 

1 

78% 

4% 

11% 

Stormy 

clear-' 

ing. 

32%(  .0 
stormy. 

Weather. 
2  wks.  previous. 

H.M.S. 

clear. 
P.  H.  S. 
stormy. 

34% 

49% 

65% 

65% 

53% 

29% 

— 

Direction  of 

Apple  Seeds. 

H.M.S. 
P.  H.  S. 

51% 

52% 

26% 

51% 

45% 

49% 

41% 

49% 

Yrs.    Av.Est. 
since  W's 
death.  Av.  Res. 

H.M.S. 

P.  H.  S. 

96. 

97 
54 

87 
33 

97 

12 

99 

8 

95 
26 

102 
13 





Av.  Est. 
Distance 
in  feet. 

Av.  Res. 

H.M.S. 

400 
P.  H.  S. 

260 

160 
120 

183 
150 

167 

74 

226 

93 

181 

118 

197 

97 

356 

179 
[310] 

276 

[450] 

Av.  Est. 
Time 
in  seconds. 

Av.  Res. 

H.  M.  S. 

80 
P.  H.  S. 

55 

65 

45 

82 
52 

97 
61 

97 
49 

84 
54 

183 
131 

70 

45 

66 
36 

[35] 

182 

[160] 

Av.  Est. 
Frequency, 

A  v.  Res. 

H.M.S. 

100* 
P.  H.  S. 

180 

179 
162 

252 
185 

122 

38 

152 
76 

452 

314 

4022 
2669 
[?] 

— 

Av.  Est. 
Weight 
in  Ounces. 

Av.  Res. 

H.  M.  S. 

10 
P.  H.  S. 

14 

7.8 

4-5 

7.6 

4.1 

6.5 

2.4 

6.0 

2.4 

7-1 
3-5 

12 
5-5 

17 

5 

[24] 

20.5 
[24] 

Av.  Est. 
Proportion, 
Width,  Length. 
Av.  Res. 

H.M.S. 

10.2 
P.  H.  S. 
1.74 

— 

8.7 
3-9 

7.8 
2.5 

8.5 
3.6 

8.3 
3- 

1. 14 
•30 

— 

1-7 
[2.0] 

Av.  Est. 
Length 
in  mm. 

Av.  Res. 

H.M.S. 

211. 

P.  H.  S. 

118 

— 

116 
39 

145 
35 

158 
29 

141 
37 

105 

— 

6. 
[9.6  in] 

Av.  Est. 
Width 
in  mm. 

Av.  Res. 

H.M.S. 

13- 

P.  H.  S. 

16 

— 

15 
6 

21 
8 

23 

8.7 

19 
7.8 

87 

— 

3.5  in- 

[4-7in] 

OBSERVATION  AND   RECOLLECTION. 


533 


i 


Taking  the  figures  more  in  detail,  it  will  first  be  noted 
that  the  H.  M.  S.  has  a  much  larger  percentage  of  correct  an- 
swers to  the  two  weather  questions  than  any  of  the  other  schools. 
This  is  no  doubt  due  to  the  fact  that  the  weather  on  the  two 
days  about  which  the  pupils  were  asked  was  '  clear,'  and  as  we 
have  more  clear  days  than  other  kinds  we  should  expect  an  in- 
crease according  to  the  probability.  Not  knowing  the  proba- 
bility of  this  and  the  other  kinds  of  weather,  we  cannot  compare 
the  other  schools,  but  considering  the  H.  M.  S,  alone  it  seems 
likely  that  accuracy  of  recollection  increased  with  age. 

In  the  next  question,  however,  this  is  not  the  case,  for  the 
younger  scholars  in  the  H.  M.  S.  had  the  same  percentage  cor- 
rect as  the  older,  and  a  trifle  greater  percentage  than  the 
College  students.  Some  chance  variation  caused  a  decrease 
to  5  per  cent,  in  the  seventh  grade,  whence  the  total  for  that 
group  (VII,,  VIII.)  was  reduced  to  26  per  cent. 

In  the  quantitative  estimations  it  will  be  noticed  that,  like  the 
College  students,  the  younger  children  underestimate  weight  and 
size  (proportion)  and  overestimate  time.  They  also  overesti- 
mate frequency  and  with  the  Wisconsin  students  underestimate 
distance  and  size  (length  of  building).  The  H.  M.  S.  and  the 
P.  H.  S.  overestimated  the  breadth  of  the  hall  or  building,  while 
the  Wisconsin  students  underestimated  the  corresponding  mag- 
nitude. In  these  estimations,  however,  there  seems  to  be  no 
regular  increase  or  decrease  in  accuracy,  except  in  the  cases  of 
'  weight, '  '  length, '  '  width, '  and  '  time.'  Taken  as  a  whole, 
however,  the  older  scholars  are  more  accurate  than  the  younger. 
This  is  shown,  also  by  the   average  residuals,  which  for  the 

have  here  reduced  the  estimations,  taking  ten  ounces  as  a  standard.  The  valid- 
it}'  of  this  procedure  is  somewhat  doubtful,  but  it  was  necessary  in  order  to 
make  any  comparison  of  the  grades.  We,  however,  give  here  the  actual  mag- 
nitudes, the  average  estimations,  and  the  residuals  for  the  several  grades. 


Table 

Ia. 

I. 

II. 

III. 

IV. 

V. 

VI. 

VII. 

VIII. 

High. 

Magnitude. 

— 

12.5 

10.5 

10.5 

13-5 

10.5 

14. 

19-5 

18. 
I.       II. 

Av.  Est. 
Av.  Res. 

— 

12.5 
5- 

6. 

4-5 

8.7 
5-4 

8.7 
5- 

7.8 
3-7 

10. 
4- 

II. 

3-4 

10.4 

3-7 

12. 
3-6 

534  SHEPHERD   I.  FRANZ   AND   HENRY  E.  HOUSTON. 

older  scholars  are  considerably  smaller  than  for  the  younger. 
The  questions  are  so  complex  in  themselves,  all  including  ob- 
servation, w^ith  errors  of  judgment,  and  memory  with  its  errors, 
that  no  general  conclusion  can  be  drawn. 

Accuracy   according  to    Sex.     From    the    following  Table 
showing  the  percentage  of  right  answers  and  the  average  esti- 


Table  II. 


Weather,  ist  wk 


Weather,  2d  wk 


Apple  seed 


Yrs.  since  W.'s  death 


Distance 


Time. 


Frequency , 


Weight 


Proportion 


H.  M.  S. 
Boys.       Girls. 


74% 

81% 

49% 

57% 

48 

43 

95 

(96) 

91 

231 

(400; 

151 

72 

(80) 

90 

191 

(100* 

178 

) 

7.8 
(10) 

6.7 

P.  H.  S. 
Boys.      Girls. 


9.7  7.0 

(10.2) 


89. 

(96) 

102. 

189 

(260) 

196 

46. 

(55) 

67. 

505 

(180) 

468 

ir. 

(14) 

12. 

Wisconsin. 
Boys.      Girls. 


19%        54% 


50%        46% 
[only  part] 


296  261 

(450) 


1.26        1.08 
(1-74) 


177  187 

(160) 


22.8        19.8 

(24) 


N.  B. — The  actual  magnitudes  are  shown  in  parentheses. 

mations  for  the  H.  M.  S.,  the  P.  H.  S.  and  the  Wisconsin 
students.  One  sees  that  the  girls  remember  the  weather  bet- 
ter than  the  boys,  but  that  the  estimations  of  the  boys  for  dis- 
tance, time  and  proportion  are  nearer  the  standard.  The  boys 
in  the  H.  M.  S.  came  nearer  to  the  date  of  Washington's  death, 
while  the  boys  and  girls  of  the  P.  H.  S.  were  about  equally 
correct.  With  weight  the  H.  M.  S.  boys  again  came  nearer, 
while  the  girls  of  the  P.  H.  S.  were  more  exact.  With  fre- 
quency the  girls  in  both  cases  were  more  correct.     The  general 


OBSERVATION  AND   RECOLLECTION. 


535 


conclusion  to  be  drawn  is  that  in  quantitative  measurements 
the  boys  are  more  exact.  This  is  also  what  Mr.  Bolton  found 
with  the  Wisconsin  students. 

Relation  of  Confidence  to  Accuracy.  When  the  students 
were  asked  the  questions  they  were  told  to  denote  by  the  letters 
A,  B,  C  or  D,  respectively,  whether  they  were  sure  their  an- 
swers were  correct,  fairly  confident,  doubtful,  or  if  their  answers 
were  only  a  guess.  The  following  table  gives  the  average  esti- 
mation when  the  students  were  confident  (A  and  B),  and  when 
they  were  doubtful  (C  and  D) . 

Table  III. 


Yrs.  since 

WS  DEATH. 

Weight 
IN  Oz. 

Distance 
IN  Ft. 

Occur- 
rence. 

Time  in 
Seconds. 

A. and  B. 

H.M.  S. 

C.  andD. 

88.5 

138. 
(96) 

(10) 

152 

285 

(400) 

205 

213 

(100) 

91 

lOI 

(75) 

A. and  B. 
P.  H.  S. 

C. and  D. 

100 
104 

(96) 

12 

11.5 

(14) 

203 

214 

(160) 

386 

"=  (.80) 

(55) 

Here,  too,  the  evidence  is  conflicting  and  no  general  con- 
clusion can  be  drawn.  In  the  estimation  for  years  since  W's 
death,  and  for  number  of  occurrences  the  more  confident  answers 
are  nearer  the  truth.  When  we  look  at  the  estimation  for  dis- 
tance, however,  we  see  that  the  two  schools  disagree.  The 
small  difference,  too,  between  the  estimates  in  some  cases 
(^.  ^.,  years  P.  H.  S.,  distance  P.  H.  S.,  occurrence  H.  M. 
S.)  together  with  a  large  variation  (in  most  cases  one-third  of 
the  average  estimation)  makes  it  unwise  to  hazard  any  con- 
clusion. 

It  was  found  that  scholarships  did  not  at  all  influence  the 
results.  Those  classed  as  the  best  students  estimated  as  wildly 
as  those  considered  the  worst ;  those  considered  as  of  medium 
ability  were  a  little  more  accurate  than  the  two  extremes. 


2  4  8  H  t> 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 


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